CPJ welcomes Armenian vote to decriminalize defamation

We issued the following statement today
afterthe National Assembly of Armenia
approved on a second reading the decriminalization of defamation, including
libel and insult. If signed into law, the amendments to Armenia’s penal
and administrative code will remove
imprisonment from the list of penalties for defamation; individuals found guilty
of the offense would face a monetary fine as maximum punishment.

“We welcome today’s move by Armenia’s parliament to
decriminalize defamation and call on President Serzh Sargsyan to sign
the proposed amendments into law,” CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program
Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. “Doing so would move Armenia one
important step closer to its full-fledged integration into the international
democratic community.”